Marseille

Founded by Greeks from Phocaea around 600 BC, which makes Marseille the oldest city in France by about five centuries. It has never much resembled the rest of the country: a working port with 111 quartiers, a population drawn from across the Mediterranean and North Africa, and a civic self-image built on not being Paris. The Calanques National Park — twenty kilometres of white limestone inlets — starts inside the city limits.

It is the most interesting city in France to walk around, and the least polished. The Vieux-Port still lands fish every morning, Le Panier is a genuine hillside old town rather than a preserved one, and the MuCEM gave the waterfront a piece of architecture worth crossing the country for. Then the Calanques, which are a national park you reach by bus.

Bouches-du-Rhône (13), Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

We already publish a full guide to Marseille — read it here →

Things to do

• The Calanques — Sormiou and Morgiou by road, En-Vau and Port-Pin on foot from Cassis. Or a boat from the Vieux-Port if the walking looks hot.
• MuCEM — A concrete lattice cube linked to Fort Saint-Jean by a footbridge, holding the civilisations of the Mediterranean.
• Notre-Dame de la Garde — 'La Bonne Mère' on the highest point, gold on top, with the whole city and the islands below.
• Le Panier on foot — The Vieille Charité almshouse at the top, then downhill through washing lines and street art to the port.
• Château d'If — Twenty minutes offshore — the island prison of The Count of Monte Cristo, and the Frioul islands beyond.
• The Corniche and Vallon des Auffes — Walk the seafront south at dusk and eat in the fishing cove under the viaduct.

3 days in Marseille

1. Day 1 Port, panier, port

   Fish market on the Vieux-Port at 8am, then up into Le Panier for the Vieille Charité. Afternoon at MuCEM and Fort Saint-Jean. Sunset from Notre-Dame de la Garde, dinner at the Vallon des Auffes.

2. Day 2 The Calanques

   Bus 21 to Luminy and walk in to Sugiton and Morgiou, or take the boat from the port if it is over 30 °C. Swim. Back for a late dinner on Cours Julien.

3. Day 3 Provence proper

   Aix-en-Provence in 35 minutes, or Cassis for the harbour and the calanques from the other end, or Arles for the Roman arena and the Camargue behind it.

Practical

Best time to go

May–June and September–October: warm sea, open everything, and the Calanques still accessible. In high summer the park closes on high fire-risk days — check the daily map before you set out. The mistral can blow hard and cold in winter and spring.

Getting there

TGV Paris–Marseille Saint-Charles in 3h10, arriving on a monumental staircase above the city. Marseille Provence airport is 25 min by shuttle. Ferries to Corsica, Algeria and Tunisia leave from the Joliette terminal.

Getting around

Two metro lines, three trams and a lot of hills. The centre is walkable; the Calanques need bus 21 to Luminy or a boat from the Vieux-Port. The ferry boat across the old port costs almost nothing and has run since 1880.

Eat & drink

Bouillabaisse properly made is a two-service ritual and costs accordingly — the charter restaurants are the ones to trust. Otherwise: panisse, pieds paquets, sea urchins in winter, and the North African food around Noailles market, which is the best-value eating in the city.

Know before you go

Marseille's reputation is worse than the reality but not baseless: keep normal city awareness around Saint-Charles station and the northern quartiers at night. Bouillabaisse under €40 is not bouillabaisse. The Calanques have almost no shade and no water — carry both.